Ball-bearing with self-adjusting casing.



0Q S.'LOGKWO0D. BALL BEARING WITH SELF ADJUSTING OASING.

APPLIOATIOI TILED OUT. I, 1909. I

Patented Nov. 22, 1910.

Islam-human:

UNITED srAcrns PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES s. LooKwoon, or NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR 'ro HYAir'r BoLLEE BEARING COMPANY, or Emerson, NEW JERS Y,- A oonrona'rxon or NEW RSEY.

' BALL-BEARING WITH sarr-enzrnsrrne onsme.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented N .22 1910.

Application file dyoctober e, 1909.. "Serial'No. 521,857.

i To all whom it may concern;

Beit knownthat I, CHARLES S. Loonwpom a citizen of the United States, residing at 289;Market street, Newark, coinity of Essex-,'

specification and the accompanying draw vings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relatesi'to. a ball-bearing: in

which the casing hasa spherical bore so that the balls may change their path of movement within the casing and thus automatically adapt themselves to changes in the inclination of the sha'ft. In thisv class of bearing, theballs have heretofore been guided upon the'ginn'er bearing-ring or hub by-a groove in the hub,Jbu-t such groove not made with opposed slo ing seats adapted to'lsupp'ert two series of alls in the same groove. In

construction,- I'employ two series of balls, 1n contact with one another on the diametrical flide of'the spherical casing, and thus contatin-g with the bore of thecasing at opposite sides of such diametricalline, where the spherical surface forms two annular seats inclined toward one another so as to crowd the two-series of balls together. To retain the balls in their paths upon the'reversely inclinedseats of the casing, I .form the hub also with similarly inclined seats and apply the two series ofballs to the opposed seats. .Thelreversely inclined seats upon the hub or inner bearing-ring are readily formed by a concave groove, which ispreferably of the same cross s ction as the bore, that is, with a radius corr sponding to the radius of such bore,--the cehters of both curves lying in the same planelso t-hat'they form inclined bearing-seats similarly opposed to one another. The angles of the reversely inclined seats uponfthe hub are not material, as the two series of balls, supported upon a hub having reversely inclined seats, are adapted to travel continuously around. the hub in contact with one'another, provided they are held by suitable means in corresponding adjacent posi- 'tions. Such means is provided in a cage having slots adapted to hold the balls of bothseries in pairs and the balls of each pair in lateral contact; As the balls in both series may he made of the same diameter and the seats which support them also of equal cllned, as .at f

where they revolve in contact withone another and their'surfaces do not, therefore,

abrade one'another. The cage may also assist in retaining the balls upon the hub when applying the casing thereto,'jby making the bars of the cage conhave to fit the sides of the balls and making one end of the cage removable from the bars to permit the nsertion of the pairs of balls between the bars.

In the annexed drawing, Figure 1 is an end view of the bearing; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section where hatched of the same bearing inclosed in a socket upon anaxletube; Fig. 3 is a cross section of the cage;

Fig. 4: is an. elevation of the cage, and Fig. 5 an elevation of the hub.

The shaft inserted in the bearing is designated a with the hub bisecure'd thereon and formed with a concave seat 0 which receives two parallel contiguous series of balls d em- .diametral lineof the spherical 'seat to press upon the'surface where it is somewhat inin Fig. 2, and the balls are thus adapted to resist end-thrust in opposite directions.

braced by a casingwhich has a spherical The'aXle-tube g is shown clearof the axle at g and formed with a socket h. to "receive the -casinge, the clearance between the axle and the axle-tube permitting the axle to .t1p slightly within the same, thus throwing the balls intoa different line-of cont-act with the casing. I The spherical surface of, the casing main- 'tains' a perfectly equal bearing upon the rolls whether the axle be tipped in one direction or the other. The halls being of the same size in the two series are readily guided by parallel guide-bars 2', which are connected by heads, 7" and are formed with concave sides is loosely fitting the balls.

The heads are fitted to turnin contact with shoulders 70 formed upon the hub near its opposite ends, and one of the heads 9' is removable as shown at the left side of Fig. 4, and secured to the ends of the guidebars by screws 1 fitted to holes. Z inthe bars.

. The removable head upon the cage permits the cage to be fitted to the opposite having. a threaded recess extended into one ends of the hub and to the balls when placed upon the seat-c. With a spherical.

I casing, the parts of the bearing could not be assembledunless ,the hub or casing were divided transversely, and the casing is therefore shown with a body-portion m end-of the same, and a separable ring-p01: tion a screwed into .the same against a pack ing upon a seat p in such body-portion. Achange in the thickness of the packing permits a slight adjustment ofthe two parts of thecasin'g towardfone another to compensate formwear of the balls, the variation of the hub, convey the thrust by central. con

tact to a ball in theadjoining series, which in turn transmits. the thrust to the inclined wall of the spherical casing which supports it. The end-thrust is thus conveyed through the balls wholly by their lateral contact, and such lateralcontact, and the corresponding positions which preserve suclicontact, are readily maintained by any cage which holds therolls of thetwo series in separate pairs.

This construction forms a ball-bearing "with. few parts and having a self-adjusting the axle of an automobile.

character capable of adapting itself automati'cally to the variations. of direction in which the pressure is imposed upon it by a jarring load,'such as is operative upon In such cone structions, the frame and parts supported. thereby are forced to yield in various di-. rections, and the present construction wholly avoids any unequal bearing of the hub uponthe supporting balls, by permitting them to .change' their relation to the spherical casing. I

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention what is claimed herein is:

l. Ina roller bearing, the combination, with a casing having a spherical bore, of a hub having a grooved seat thereon and two contiguous series of balls fitted to such seat and to the spherical bore of the casing, and means for holding each ball of one series in lateral contact with a ball of the adjacent series in their revolutions upon the hub.

2. In a roller bearing, the combination, with a casing having a spherical bore, of an inner bearing-ring having a concave groove, the centers of curvature of the groove and the casing being inthe same plane, two series of balls fitted between the casing and inner bearing-ring in lateral contact, and meansfor, holding the balls in pairs contiguo'usto' one another in their movement within the casing. v

3. In a roller bearing, the combination,

, with a casinghaving a spherical bore forming-two ball-seats sloped toward one another, of aninner bearing-ring having a concave groove forming two ball-seats sloped toward one another and opposed to-the seats in the casing, two series of balls fitted to the said seats in contact with; one another, and means for holding the balls in corresponding positions contiguous, to one another, the opposed seats operating. to hold the two series of balls in contact withone another whenin opera tion, and to thus transmit end thrust without friction from one series, of balls to the other. .L In a roller bear ng, the combination,

with a casinghaving a sphericalibore, of a hub having shoulders at its ends and a concave seatthereon witlrtwo series of balls fitted to such seat and to the spherical bore of the casing in contact with one another at opposite sides of a diameter of the casing,

and a cage having guide-bars between each ball of each series, said guide-bars concaved upon theirsides to hold the balls upon the hub, and the heads of the cage bein fitted to the shoulders upon the hub to-guide it in itsmovement with the balls.

In a roller bearing, the combination, with two contiguous series of balls and a hub and casing having concave seats to resist end thrust, of a cage having annular heads, and guide-bars with concave sides to hold the balls in place upon the hub, and one of the heads being secured detachably to the guide-bars for inserting two balls in each space between the guide-bars.

6. In a roller bearing, the combination, with a casing having .a spherical bore, of a hub having a seat concaved in cross section with the same curvature as the casing, two

series of balls fitted tosuch hub and casing at opposite sides of a diameter of the casing, and a cage separating the balls of both series into pairs, with the balls having lateral contact in each pair.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES s. LOCKWOOD.

Witnesses: V l

L. LEE,

THOMAS S. CRANE. 

